Morning Routine
by Garry Way
Summary: Shikamaru found he loved mornings like these. Waking up slow, with a warm body next to him, the cool morning breeze drifting in from a window accidentally left open, the bed sheets tangled messily around the two. Yes, Shikamaru loved mornings like these.


**Morning Routine**

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Shikamaru found he loved mornings like these. Waking up slow, with a warm body next to him, the cool morning breeze drifting in from a window accidentally left open, the bed sheets tangled messily around the two from last nights love making session before lazily falling asleep in each others arms. Yes, Shikamaru lived for mornings like these. The only thing he didn't like was having to get up and prepare himself for the day, but he snuggled closer to the sleeping body next to him, putting off getting out of bed for another five minutes. He wanted to live in this moment forever. He watched the peaceful rise and fall of his bed mates chest in content slumber, leaning in to place a small kiss on his partner's forehead.

The other stirred lightly and for a moment Shikamaru thought he woke up his sleeping partner, but the other simply rolled away from him, mumbling incoherently, "Shika, the grapes are getting away. Get the earmuffs or I won't become hokage."

"Naruto." Shikamaru chuckled to himself, sitting up in bed. He ran his fingers through his bed mates short blond hair, tracing his exposed seal on his stomach with his other hand. He leaned down, placing another light kiss before turning away from him altogether.

Gathering his thoughts, he knew it was time for his morning cigarette, as bothersome as it was getting out of bed. Pushing aside the blankets, he rose and stretched, admitting a small yawn. Their landlord prohibited smoking inside, so he tugged on a nearby pair of sweatpants that definitely belonged to Nartuo by the way they sagged on his hips and road up his long legs. He pulled his shoulder length locks of raven black hair into a loose ponytail, grabbed his pack of herbal cigarettes, and slid open the window to the balcony, climbing outside.

He admired his surroundings as he lit up, breathing out a plume of smoke before taking another drag, removing the cigarette from his lips. His morning smoke was like a morning cup of coffee or tea, without it, he was more irritable and sluggish then usual. He liked listening to the different birds, liked observing the clouds that passed by, liked watching different people come and go, but mostly he used this time to think. It relaxed him.

He often thought about Naruto when he came out in the morning. In fact, the slightly less taller blond took up a lot of his head space now and days, not that he was complaining. He never ever thought about being friends with the energetic shinobi, let alone lovers, but he found the two balanced each other out. Shikamaru's lethargic nature calmed Nartuo's overly energetic personality and Naruto's infectious optimism offset Shikamaru's tendency to expect the worst case scenario. They were perfect for each other and they both had deep rooted respect for one another having fought along side each other since they were both teenagers.

He thought about the up coming Chuunin exams he was suppose to plan with Temari again at the end of the month. He was most likely going to hit the bottle hard to deal with the headstrong sand ninja who'd be staying on his couch through the planning and exam process due to Konoha's lodging leaving much to be desired by her. To make matters worse, Naruto would most likely be on his next assignment then, so he'd have to deal with her all by himself. And there would be a lot to fight about seeing that Tsunade was less then trilled with the exam they put together two years ago, refusing to advance any leaf village applicant because the two could not work together to save their lives. Temari would always try to make things more complicated then they needed to be to heighten the challenge of the test like disallowing proctors to set foot into the forest of death, unless highly necessary, until the second exam was through. Shikamaru wanted to keep the body count down by making rules that prohibited fatal blows when genin clearly surrender, raising the need for more teachers to watch the students. Tsunade would be working very closely with the two of them this time as a sort of referee. Yet another troublesome women to put up with, even if she was the respected leader of his village.

He also thought about how he kept unsuccessfully trying to get Naruto to retest. He knew Naruto had it in him to advance and it would up the probability of getting a mission together if he stayed in the village for more then a month at a time, but the other never stayed still for to long, let alone find time retake the test. It would require at least three months off. Three months Naruto didn't want to waste if he ended up not advancing after all. And he would rather go off on a long complicated mission alone or take a kunai to the head then be forced into continence because of a unwanted house guest, especially the pushy sand ninja, putting a damper on their sex drives. He'd always tell him the only title that mattered to him was Hokage, to which Shikamaru would never bother to rebuttal. Arguing was troublesome and a waste of energy, especially when you were sparring with Naruto. Besides, he heard loud whispers that Naruto was on the short list to be invited to test for Jonin later this year anyway; he just had to quit avoiding Tsunade whenever he blew into town and actually bother to read his growing stack of mail for once.

And last but not least, he thought about the conversation he had with his mother the other day when he ran into her at the marketplace, in which she told him in so little worlds to literally straighten himself out, find a wife, or denounce the Nara name.

He took another drag off of his cigarette, letting the smoke deep into his lungs before exhaling. "How troublesome."

He didn't expect his family to take kindly to his homosexuality, in fact, he pretty much accepted the fact that he was going to get thrown out of the household even before coming out, which was what happened shortly after his seventeenth birthday. The fact that he choose to be with Naruto of all people really put the nail in the coffin, but he couldn't help it. He just didn't understand women, not as well as he understood and wanted to be with men. His father was starting to slowly come around to the concept, much to the dismay of his mother, often asking him on secret lunch dates to rebuild his shattered relationship with his son and begrudgingly getting to know Naruto. He knew his mother never would accept him until he had a wife and at the ripe age of eighteen, marriage was the last thing on the lazy young adults mind, though most of his friends were getting married and in the process of starting families.

He shook his head, trying to think about anything else, making a mental note not to reflect upon unpleasant things so early in the morning. They tended to sour his mood for the rest of the day. Naruto was home and would stay home for at least another three weeks, that was something to think about. Finishing his cigarette, Shikamaru stood, stretching and yawning one more time before going back inside. He looked over at the bed to see Naruto still asleep. Figuring the blond would probably sleep most of the day, Shikamaru moved onto getting his morning shower.

He had to be in his ninja academy classroom in an hour so he had no time to waste. He already had a hard time controlling his students with his lazy nature, being late would just give them more incentive to walk over him. He could only put up with so much before his shadow jutsu got involved that normally ended with him choking someone in front of Iruka. And of course there were always a few Naruto's in his class that took it upon themselves to be pranksters. In his first year teaching, he sat on tacks, had many forms of gum stuck in his hair, found himself glued to various objects, and came home covered in unidentifiable substances enough times to want to scream. Much to the chagrin of Shikamaru, Iruka sensei could only laugh in wild amusement, patting him on the back with encouragement that eventually he'll get the hang of it. He figured it was karma biting him in the ass from when he was a student, sleeping though most of his lessons.

Grabbing a fresh pair of undergarments and a fresh towel from his dresser, Shikamaru made his way into the bathroom, discarding Naruto's sweatpants along the way. Testing the water to make sure it was the right temperature; he removed his hair tie, stepping under the hot stream of water. He felt his mussels relax as he let out a long sigh in content. He was about to reach for the soap when he felt an arm wrap around him. Startled, he gasped sharply, spinning around to meet eyes with his captor.

Settling down, he grinned slyly. "I figured you would sleep the whole day, Naruto. You nearly gave me a heart attack."

Naruto pinned the taller man to the wall by his wrists, placing light kisses up his neck to his ear and Shikamaru nearly melted at his touch.

"I missed you to much to sleep all day." He finally said when he finished attacking his neck.

"I missed you, too." Shika agreed, leaning forward to capture Naruto's lips in a quick kiss. He smirked before continuing. "You really should consider taking a few months off, missing you is bothersome."

Naruto returned the grin, letting go of Shikamaru's wrists to wrap a piece of Shika's wet black hair around his finger. "You know I'd love to, but Temari is coming."

"She's not that bad." Shikamaru lied, resting his arms on Naruto's shoulders. "You'd hardly even know she is here."

The blond snorted in mild amusement, rolling his eyes. "You suck at lying, Shika. If I'm going to stay home for a few months, I'd like you all to myself." Naruto leaned in closer to whisper into Shika's ear. "And when I mean all to myself, I really mean all to myself. No unwanted house guests."

Shikamaru shivered at Naruto's breath on his ear. He knew how to push all the right buttons. He pulled Naruto closer so their hips touched. "You have me all to yourself right now? Why not take advantage of the opportunity?"

Naruto laughed teasingly, pulling back to leer at him with his signature goofy smile. "Because Iruka will refuse to buy me ramen for a week if he found out I made you late for class."

Shikamaru sighed, shaking his head. He knew full well he should have seen that one coming. "Troublesome."

Naruto stole a quick kiss before pulling away from him entirely. "I'll make you some toast to go."

"You do that." Shikamaru said, reaching for the soap as the blond left the bathroom, now having to deal with a hard on along with being late for class. "Troublesome."

Dealing with himself and finishing his shower, Shikamaru quickly got dressed. Zipping up his Chuunin vest and pulling his hair into his signature ponytail, Shika entered the small kitchenette. Dressed only in a pair of ratty red flannel pajama pants, Naruto spread an unhealthy amount of butter onto two blackened pieces of toast. Shikamaru sighed at his partner's inability to make anything decent other then cup ramen, which was sitting next to him with his favorite chopsticks resting on top, waiting to be devoured.

"I burnt the toast a little." Naruto said, handing him the pieces on a napkin for him to eat on his way to class. "I think it is salvageable, but I put on some extra butter on just in case."

Shikamaru scratched his head with his free hand, heaving out another sigh. A little was an understatement, the pieces most likely caught on fire. "I guess it's the thought that counts. I had better be off. I'll see you tonight?"

Naruto nodded, giving him a good-bye kiss. "I'll be here. Have fun and try not to get glued to anything. Then again, it makes a funny story and Iruka is good at telling them."

Shikamaru shot daggers at him with his eyes. "Sometimes I really hate you."

Naruto laughed heartily, picking up his ramen. "You love me and you know it."

Shikamaru eyed his burnt toast again, muttering to himself, "Yes and often times I wonder why."

Naruto put his hand to his ear in a classic I can't hear you fashion, heading towards the balcony to eat his breakfast. "You're going to be late."

Shikamaru checked his watch, he had five minutes to make it to class if he ran and running was troublesome. There were no sick days at ninja school unless you were seriously ill or injured, so calling out sick was a no go. Admitting defeat, Shikamaru hung his head. Turning on his heel, he put on his shoes at the doorway and walked to class eating his smoldering toast. He was ten minutes late, got his chalkboard eraser glued to his hand, and spent most of the class trying to keep everyone in order without shadow strangulation, but throughout it all, he knew his morning routine wasn't the same without Naruto finding a way to blow it all to hell. He would never admit it out loud, but he kind of liked the way the blond messed everything up, it helped him become not so set in his ways. And in the back of his mind, he began plotting a way to make him pay for it that night.

**The End

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